Games, such as board games or children's games, have long been available as a form of entertainment and test of skill. The types of games are numerous, and range from simple games suitable for young children to highly complicated adult games. Many games include a play region, along with play pieces or other accessories for use by players on the play region. The play region includes a design of some type defining various zones or areas directing movement of the play pieces. Other accessories, such as die or cards, may also be included.
For some games, it is desirable to hide a portion of the play region and/or play pieces from an opposing player(s). In a crossword game, for example, such as that marketed under the trade designation "SCRABBLE", players keep spare letters lined up on a rack, such that opposing or adjacent players may not view their letters. Although points are scored in the crossword game by arranging letters to form words in a two-dimensional fashion, players are limited to storing or arranging letters on their crossword rack in a linear or single dimension.
In some games, a large portion of the play region is hidden from another player(s). For example, in the naval combat game marketed under the trade designation "BATTLESHIP", each player is positioned opposite their opponent with a briefcase-shaped game unit. Each player's game unit is opened to expose an ocean grid and a target grid. The ocean grid is used for "hiding" a player's battleships from the opposing player, and the target grid is used for tracking "hits" and "misses" of an opponent's battleships. Further, the target grid is used for blocking the opponent from seeing an opposing player's ocean grid. With this game setup, game play is limited to two players, and each player must trust that the other player will not move their battleships around once they are placed on the ocean grid.
Other known games, such as that marketed under the trade designation "MASTERMIND", are designed to hide a relatively small portion of the play region from an opposing player's view. In such game, a secret code is hidden by one player from another player.